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Five Poems (Quintet)
(Islamic World , Manuscripts and Rare Books, Islamic Manuscripts)
Walters manuscript W.622 is an illustrated and illuminated Safavid copy of the Khamsah (quintet) of Amir Khusraw Dihlavi (died 725 AH/AD 1325), written by Pir Husayn al-Katib al-Shirazi in 935 AH/AD 1529. The codex opens with a double-page illuminated frontispiece with verses in honor of the poet Mir (Amir) Khusraw (fols. 1b-2a). There are 4 illuminated incipit pages introducing the individual poems, and 13 paintings illustrate the text. The lacquer binding, which is not original to the manuscript, has a hunting scene on the upper and lower boards. The lower board is inscribed ya Shah Najaf (oh, King of Najaf, i.e. 'Ali) and is dated 1271 AH/AD 1854.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Muhammad 'Ali Shirazi ibn […] Muhammad Qasim Shirazi, 1250 (?) [mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Iran (Place of Origin)
Measurements
Folio H: 10 5/8 x W: 6 1/2 in. (27.0 x 16.5 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
W.622
